Confessions of a New York Times Crossword Puzzle addict Jim Horne crossword blog

Crossword Analysis

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August 08, 2008

Shoot with steam

Another Friday, another Mike Nothnagel. His August 8 puzzle (answers) is typically tough but full of little gems if they can just be teased out. It's themeless, so let's just look at some random highlights.

I love the word REDUX, probably because I encountered it with Rabbit Redux when I read the John Updike series at an impressionable age. It's a word that should be "revived." The Prisoner of ZENDA (the 1937 version with Ronald Colman) is one of my favorite films but "title castle town of book and film" is a particularly obscure clue. That film was remade nearly shot-for-shot in color with a different cast in 1952, but stick to the original. The 1993 Kevin Kline comedy Dave is a loose remake.

"Out" is an adjective meaning OLD HAT. I like "one side in an informal game" for SKINS. I haven't seen SUPER SIZE ME because I think it would creep me out. I used to work as a conductor and a TIN EAR would indeed be a detriment.

More Jim stories: There was a tech conference in the early 1990s for programmers that famously supplied all the participants with endless supplies of JOLT cola. The theory was that since programmers get paid to convert Coke and pizza into code, the extra caffeine and added sugar in Jolt would make us all happy. It made us all cranky instead and I'm still coming down from the high. I guess that makes it an "energy drink."

SETTS show up every now and then in puzzles. They're "small paving stones." "Shoot with steam" is a great clue. Shoot is a noun, and the steam is poetic. The answer is LOVE SCENE. And speaking of movies, I thought Golden Globes were for TV but apparently they cover film as well since Eddie Murphy won one in 1985 for his role of AXEL FOLEY in Beverly Hills Cop.

It all adds up to a tough Friday puzzle. Just what we've come to expect.

Comments

Shoot with steam

Another Friday, another Mike Nothnagel. His August 8 puzzle (answers) is typically tough but full of little gems if they can just be teased out. It's themeless, so let's just look at some random highlights.

I love the word REDUX, probably because I encountered it with Rabbit Redux when I read the John Updike series at an impressionable age. It's a word that should be "revived." The Prisoner of ZENDA (the 1937 version with Ronald Colman) is one of my favorite films but "title castle town of book and film" is a particularly obscure clue. That film was remade nearly shot-for-shot in color with a different cast in 1952, but stick to the original. The 1993 Kevin Kline comedy Dave is a loose remake.

"Out" is an adjective meaning OLD HAT. I like "one side in an informal game" for SKINS. I haven't seen SUPER SIZE ME because I think it would creep me out. I used to work as a conductor and a TIN EAR would indeed be a detriment.

More Jim stories: There was a tech conference in the early 1990s for programmers that famously supplied all the participants with endless supplies of JOLT cola. The theory was that since programmers get paid to convert Coke and pizza into code, the extra caffeine and added sugar in Jolt would make us all happy. It made us all cranky instead and I'm still coming down from the high. I guess that makes it an "energy drink."

SETTS show up every now and then in puzzles. They're "small paving stones." "Shoot with steam" is a great clue. Shoot is a noun, and the steam is poetic. The answer is LOVE SCENE. And speaking of movies, I thought Golden Globes were for TV but apparently they cover film as well since Eddie Murphy won one in 1985 for his role of AXEL FOLEY in Beverly Hills Cop.

It all adds up to a tough Friday puzzle. Just what we've come to expect.